Bandages
by PansexualPirate
Summary: A Hawke/Anders au were Hawke get's badly fucked up and ends in Anders clinic. Hawke refused to talk about what happened, making Justice suspicious, however, Anders finds himself very interested in this new man in his clinic.
1. Chapter 1

_Today was not a good day._

No, not at all. Anders walked from spot to spot. Checking on people with mortal wounds who obviously weren't going to make it… even with the help of his magic. It was hard to watch, almost impossible. But he kept moving. Working swiftly to try and patch people up. It really wasn't looking good for most of these people. He continued to pace about. Keeping up a brisk walk that allowed him to move swiftly, yet not get too exhausted from all this running about. Though he could already feel the day wearing him down.

It wasn't until late in the day that he had finally gone through all the patients that were brought in. Most of them mortally wounded and on their last moment. The least Anders could do was ease them along through it. By this point he was exhausted. Worn down by the constant use of his magic and just emotional ware of the day. He finally took a seat when he saw around three people struggling to hold up someone in the middle. The healer let out a sigh. It looked like his night wasn't quite done yet. Pulling himself to his sore feet, he strolled over to see what was going on.

"What's this?" Anders asked, still not close enough to make out what they were struggling with. Maybe it was just a heavy crate of supplies.

One of them glanced over, face a bit red from effort. "Well, we found one more sir."

Anders lifted a brow before peaking over. They weren't lying. In their unstable grip resting the bleeding, mess of a huge looking man. It was obvious why they were struggling so much, this guy was thick. Muscles ripped up his arms, which were bare at this point. Anders couldn't make out much more of him though, most of his body covered in deep cuts and drenched in blood. It was sad, he probably wouldn't wake up again.

The mage sighed, beckoning the people over to one of the beds in the corner. Watching as the three haul the mess over. Barely able to get him up enough to drop him onto the bed. The scene was hard to watch. As they pathetically tried to lift this rag doll of a man up onto the bed.

"Do you think you'll be able to help him?" One of them asked, attempting to wipe some of the smeared blood off his shirt.

Anders looked over the mess of a man before slowly shaking his head. "I can try… but I doubt that he'll ever wake up again. Let alone make it through the night."

They nodded and frowned before moving to go assist somewhere else. Anders too the time to bandage some of the bigger wounds. Even though he was more likely to die, the mage wasn't about to let that be the man's only option. Besides, even if it was a very slim chance of saving another's life, Anders was willing to take it.

There were a lot of wounds that needed patching on this guy. Anders used the last bit of magic he could muster up for the day to heal up some of the more viciously deep wounds. Though it felt like it was accomplishing almost nothing. Whoever or whatever did this to this guy wasn't holding back. And it seemed this guy was lucky to be in one piece. Even if that one piece was missing a lot of chunks.

The apostate sat there for awhile. It only felt like a few moments, but it was probably an hour or so. Mainly staying still out of exhaustion. Not even wanting to give the effort of walking back to his own bed. His eyes suddenly darted over the man. He was still breathing, which was good. His skin a darker tone. Most of the features of his skin where hidden by bandages or dried blood, but even with most of the skin being covered, Anders could still see that his skin was completely covered in darker freckles. The things covering him as if they were slowly spreading. It made Anders chuckle softly. They'd be cute if they weren't in such critical danger.

The mage frowned again. It was honestly an awful situation. And even though Anders wished he could do more…

He sighed, finally pushing himself to his feet. There was nothing else he could do at this point. Now it was time to try and sleep. To regain some of his lost energy and be ready to help again tomorrow.

The next day went about the same. Noone new came in, but they had to clear out some of the dead. Anders was a bit surprised to see the big man was still breathing… but at the same time, his breathing seemed faltered. Slower and less steady than it should be. Anders doubted he'd make it to the next day.

Even though the day was slower than usual, Anders still found ways to keep his hands busy. Sending out people to try and locate more supplies. Sorting out storages and overall just making sure all the chores where done for the day.

But Anders continued to check up on him throughout the day. Organizing their stock and materials before stopping by the bed to check him over. Then he'd go and work on some other patients. Finally heading back to clean some of the bandages on the man. The day seemed to go by quick. Only feeling like a few hours before Anders was back in bed. Laying back and getting ready for the next day.

A loud sound awoke him half way through the night. Anders jolted upwards. His eyes scanning in the dark to see what was going on. His first thought was that it was templars. Coming to take him back to the circle. His blood boiled for a moment, Justice twisting and turning in the back of his head. But he forced it down. The sound had come from inside the clinic.

Anders created a small amount of light with his magic to allow him to see. The dim light casting around him in a small area. Making it easy for him to navigate through the clinic towards the noise.

It was awhile before Anders really saw anything. But close to the back of the clinic he could make out the shape of someone walking. He paused before calling out, the figure still too far away for the light to catch enough of their features.

"Hey!" He called out into the dark, eyes scanning to pick up clues, "what are you doing?"

Anders saw the figure jump slightly, immediately followed by a deep, throaty groan of pain from the sudden movement. But there was no answer, so Anders moved closer. "Hello?"

Anders jumped a little bit when the light hit the darker skin of the figure. Shit, he couldn't even imagine it to be so. But there was the large man, slumped over and clenching his gut. Heavily limping across the floor. Not only was this goner awake, but he was walking.

And as amazing as that was, Anders could tell the man was about to topple over. So the mage moved quickly to his side, attempting to help guide him, though Anders knew there was no chance he could move this guy if he fell over. He was too heavy for that to be an option.

"You should really get back in bed," Anders started, moving to gently place his hand on his back. "walking around is o-"

"Where-?"

Anders paused at the sound. It was almost impossible to understand. A sound choking on pain and riding on a rough, gravelly sound. As if the man had a mouth full of sharp rocks. "Your bed is ri-"

"No." The man stumbled away, his cough of a voice picking up a slightly frustrated tone. "Where… How did I…"

Anders realized what he was trying to ask. And he suddenly realized how confusing this might be. But he didn't really have time to explain. He needed to get this guy back in bed before he collapsed. "Don't worry, you're in my clinic. Now, you need to lay down. Before you hurt yourself more."

The man's eyes turned to Anders'. Getting stuck there for a moment. The color took his breath away for a moment, because they were absolutely gorgeous. Even in the low light of the spell, they almost glowed. Bright orange eyes gleamed in the dark, checking Anders over before they'd drift back in front of the man. Mumbling things under his breath.

Anders didn't hesitate before gently taking his hand and leading him back to his bed, glad to see that he followed without hesitation. It wasn't long before Anders had him back on the bed.

"Much better." Anders began. Moving to adjust the bed back in place. But Anders was caught off guard as the man mumbled something else again.

"Bethany….." He coughed loudly. Looking at Anders as if he expected an answer.

"I don't know what you're trying to say, but you should go back to sleep."

"...carver…"

The words were definitely getting more coherent, but the healer still had no idea what he was saying. "I can barely understand you. How about you go back to sleep, and we'll talk in the morning? Does that sound okay?"

The man gave a soft nod. His eyes glazed over before they closed again, moving to lay back on the bed. Anders stayed there for a bit. Watching as the should be corpse continued to breath for a while longer. He knew he couldn't fall back asleep after that. So he set up a small candle near by. Getting to work on his manifesto and keeping a close eye on the night walker.

The man didn't wake back up the next morning. But the good news was that he was alive. And strong. Anders still had no idea how someone so injured could get out of bed and walk. At this point, Anders wasn't so sure this man was going to die. Now it seemed more likely that he was going to live. And that filled Anders with a weird sense of joy. Knowing that he was going to be okay.

Anders found himself checking up on him more often through out the day. Almost disappointed he hadn't woken back up right away. But you can't have everything. When more work showed up, Anders asked an extra hand to keep an eye on the bright eyed man. To let Anders know if he woke back up.

So Anders went through another usual day. Healing a few minor wounds with magic, tending to old bandages, and checking over supplies. And as the day drew on, Anders was pretty disappointed to find out he hadn't woken back up. But glad to hear that the man's breathing seemed to have steadied and become more even. At least there was some good news.

The clinic was almost empty by nightfall. A lot of the patients healed or moved out for other reasons. Leaving only the large man and another patient. Before heading off to bed, Anders decided to check on the man one more time.

At this point, all the blood was washed off. And Anders swore there was more freckles then before. His torso bare, but he was covered in so many bandages it might as well have been a shirt. Staring at this point, Anders could see a lot of light, thin scars along his body. Some pretty old, and some still fairly new. So this guy wasn't new to wounds. Which might help explain his insanely high pain tolerance. Anders also couldn't help but notice that his torso was covered in a layer of fat over muscles. Meaning his body was composed of working muscle.

But he didn't show any visible signs of waking up. Just a steady rise and fall of his large chest. So Anders turned to leave. Heading back towards his desk for the night to wo-

Anders stopped dead in his tracks at the low groan behind him. He turned on his heel. Looking back to the man in the bed as he slowly turned in his bed. Anders couldn't help but let the excitement bubble in his stomach as he hurried over. "You're awake!"

"I am awake." The man said, rubbing his head and leaning against the back of the bed. His face contorted, most likely from the stiffness and pain from moving, but also a splash of confusion hid in his expression.

Anders smiled as he tried to lay the man back down on the bed. "You shouldn't move. It's not good for y-"

He laid back down without much effort. Letting out a weak chuckle before cuddling into the bed. "Where am I?" He asked, breaking off Ander's sentence mid way.

Anders stopped a moment to look him over. "You're in my clinic. Do you need some water o-"

The man shifted in his place, cutting Ander's off mid sentence one again. "How did I get here?"

"Some guys brought you in, said yo-"

"What's your name?"

Anders was taken back by this for a moment. Blinking in surprise before leaning forward. "My names Anders I-"

"Hawke."

Anders blinked, tilting his head slightly. "Excuse me?"

The man paused before letting off a short snort. "I'm Hawke."

Anders paused before nodding. "Oh, that's quite the name."

Hawke snorted a small laugh. "Thanks, I know my name is pretty great."

Anders chuckled nervously. "I can't believe you could walk last night. You-"

Hawke interrupted the mage again. Letting off a soft chuckle. "Yeah, I'm pretty shredded."

Anders nodded, "Yeah, what did this to you."

Hawke paused before shaking his head. "No, I Meant I'm Shredded. Like that I'm ripped." Anders titled his head slightly before Hawke smirked more. "I'm super muscular babe."

Anders paused before chuckling slightly. "Oh, I can see that."

Hawke snorts another laugh as he pats one of the unharmed parts of his arms. "Yeah, it's definitely not hard to spot."

Anders chuckled softly. His pale cheeks turning a soft red. "Yeah… It's pretty out there." Anders paused, curiosity still peeking in his gut. "But what did this to you? And how did you even live through these wounds?"

There was a long pause. Weird silence that seemed to follow as Anders waited for the man's answer. He swore he could have seen a waver in his grin at the question. But it could have been Anders imagination.

"So, you said something about water? Could I get some of that? My throat is really dry."

Anders paused, because that was definitely not an answer to his question. But he stood up, brushing himself off before he turned to go. "Of course. You must be hungry too. I'll go grab you some real quick." Before hurrying off to grab something for the patient. Anders was wondering if that was an avoidance of the question or if it was because the man was probably starving. He decided it was the later. So he moved at a decent speed. Gathering a basic ration for him, along with a nice, tall glass of water to bring back.

Handing it was over, it was immediately apparent he had to be starving. Scooping the dried food quickly into his mouth. Eating half of it before taking huge swig of the water. Drinking the whole glass in two large gulps.

Conversation followed as he continued to eat. Anders attempted main conversation. Where Hawke had come from, what he had fought, things like that. But all questions where dodged. Only responded to in quirky jokes or statements redirecting to other conversation. It didn't take long for Anders to abandon such questions. Deciding to stick to casual conversations. Answering simple questions about the clinic and about Hawke's wounds.

It only felt like moments to Anders, but it soon settled in to be a few hours. And Anders didn't even realize he'd fallen asleep in the chair next to the patient's bed. A sudden silence coming over him as he slowly dozed off. Slouching back and finally letting his eyes drift close.

Who could blame him. Anders rarely got a good night's sleep. It had been a long few days, and he was definitely tired. But he had a lot of things to dream about. And a lot of more things to look forward tonight. Maybe he could even discover some new things about this strange patient.


	2. Chapter 2

Anders was a little bit startled when he woke up. Finding himself still slouched in the chair. His whole body jolting up as he awoke from a deeper part of his sleep cycle. Head turning for a few moments, letting his mind catch back up. Trying to remember where he was at this very moment.

It did occur to him after a short moment that the patient, Hawke, was still in bed. It didn't look like he was asleep. Just slouched as deep as one could go in the stiff beds and old pillows. Eyes staring off towards the ceiling. Anders imagined that he must be daydreaming.

Before Anders spoke up, Hawke glanced over from the corner of his eyes. "well, you definitely don't sleep long." He remarked, shifting so he could naturally face Anders. "That definitely wasn't a full night's rest."

Anders chuckled before moving to run his hand along his stiff neck. "Well, there's no time to sleep around here." He jokes back. Ever so slightly. Though he really wished that was the only reason he had a really hard time sleeping.

Hawke shrugs and watches him. "So, you got things to do already?" he asked, glancing around the almost empty clinic. Early morning sun would be trying to get in if the Clinic wasn't so far in the underbelly of the town. Instead lanterns on the wall had been lit, giving a steady glow around the room. And highlighting the fact there were almost no patients to attend to at the moment. "Doesn't seem like you should have that much to do."

Anders stood up, brushing himself off lightly. Then glancing back over towards the man in bed. "Why, don't want to be alone?"

Hawke paused, actually looking as if he was thinking the remark over before giving a slight nod. "Yeah, actually. If I'm stuck in bed, I'd rather have someone to talk to."

Hesitation followed for a moment, for Anders really hadn't expected such a sincere answer. "Well today's going to he as boring as it looks. So once I finish all the basic daily routines, I'll come back and check on you, okay?"

Hawke chuckled, shifting to roll onto his back once more. "That sounds good to me." Before the large man seemed to drift back off into mental space.

Anders watched him for a moment before dragging himself away. Heading to perform mundane routines. But even Anders knew there wasn't going to be much to do today.

So he got to work. Changing bandages on the last few patients still at the clinic. Getting to work healing everyone up, and even getting the chance to release a few more people. Today was looking like it was going to be a good day. Which was a change of pace Anders happily accepted.

Keeping busy was always a helpful thing for Anders mentally. Allowing him to stay focused on more important things. Also keeping his mind from drifting to…. Unwanted thoughts. So slow days like this were nice in theory, because it meant there weren't a lot of damaged or injured people. But in retrospect, it usually sucked for Anders, because he didn't have anything better but to let his mind wonder… and that never went well.

He grabbed a thing of clean bandages from the pile before heading back towards Hawke. It definitely was nice to have someone to talk to… And Anders couldn't lie, he was nice to look at too… Even if at the moment he was covered in bandages.

Getting back, it looked as if the man had taken up messing with some of his wrappings. The tape holding it down curling up around the edges. The man's thick fingers still messing with the edge of the things.

"Hey," Anders started as he got a bit closer. "you're not supposed to be messing with those."

Hawke looked up, his lower lip puckering out in a soft pout. "Aw, am I in trouble?"

Anders stopped in his tracks, feeling his face turning a soft red at the tone of Hawke's voice. It was obviously… flirty. Or at least that's how Anders' interested the man's words. Before Anders could react more, the other man burst into laughter. Anders took a moment to readjust himself as the man kept laughing for a bit.

When his laughter cut off, the man continued as if he hadn't laughed at his own comment for a whole minute. "But really, these things are itching up a storm and I'm about to lose it!"

Anders paused and sat on the edge of his bed. "Really? That's not a good thing."

Hawke paused, his eyebrows raised slightly. "Oh?"

Anders nodded before he'd move to try and sit Hawke up. "It might just be because it's time to change the bandages. Let's just get them off and take a look, okay?"

Hawke let out a slow groan from effort. Sitting up and letting Anders get at the bandages. Which the healer worked at quickly. Unwinding the dirtied bandages from the wounds until it exposed the bloody but healing wounds underneath. Luckily it didn't look like anything was wrong. Anders paused at scars over one of his breast. Older scars that were obviously fairly deep into his chest. Anders didn't even notice as his fingers softly ran over one of them.

The mage bounced in surprise at the short vibration from underneath his finger tips. He quickly pulled his hand away as the man let out another chuckle. "You don't have to make up excuses to touch me."

Anders turned red before going to clean the wounds. Moving to rub a healing poultice into some of the wounds. Hawke let out a surprised yelp at the slight sting that Anders knew followed the addition of the medicine. "Ouch babe."

Anders snorted a small laugh as he started to roll bandages back over the wounds. "Why do you keep calling me that?"

"What? Babe?"

Anders nodded. "Yes, yes that."

Hawke snorted another small laugh as Anders finished wrapping the bandages around the biggest wounds on his torso. "Well because you're pretty cute."

"wh-what?" Anders choked out. A bit startled and causing his hands to fumble a little bit. Now this was definitely flirting.

"Yeah. That and I forgot your name."

The last part definitely reeled Anders back to this world. Real smooth there, buddy. "It's Anders."

Hawke nodded. As if contemplating the name over. Really trying to take in that name. Anders even swore he heard him mumbling it over to himself. "I'll try to remember that."

Anders rolled his eyes as he got back to work. A soft pink still stuck to his cheeks, though it was fading fast. A moment of silence seemed to follow. And it only took Anders a few more moment to finish winding the bandages. Tieing them close before gently patting Hawke's back. "There, feel any better?"

Hawke snorts. "As good as a man can feel with a hole in his stomach."

Anders laughed a bit at that. A good, genuine laugh. "That's good news." Anders joked back before shifting to the edge of the bed. "So, is there anything else you need?"

"Something to do when you're busy." There wasn't any Hesitation to it. Almost directly following the end of the Mage's question. "Because I nearly lost it having to sit here and stare at the walls. It sucks."

Anders paused before letting off a soft chuckle. "Right, of course. I'll get you some books to read. Does that sound okay?"

Hawke let out a snort, cuddling into the bed more. "I guess. Not really much else for me to do, is there?"

"Nope, you need to stay in bed. That way you won't mess up any of your healing wounds."

Hawke responded with a long, drawn out groan. But his large head eventually nodded. "Yeah, that all makes sense."

Anders sat there for a moment. Not really sure what else to say, but not wanting to leave right away either. Enjoying just sitting on the edge of the bed near the man. A thought popped into his head and Anders turned to face Hawke again. "So, do you want to talk about wh-"

"Listen-" Hawke interrupted the mage. His head turned away, refusing to make actual eye contact as he shifted a bit. Uncomfortable. "You're really nice. But I don't want to talk about that. Hell, I'd rather not even think about it."

For a moment, he was about to object. Maybe knowing what had caused the wounds would make them easier to patch up. Maybe if he had more information he could help him more. But then it started to sink in. The uncomfortable posture, the shifting eyes. He needed to back down from this. Whatever had happened was really hard on the man. There was no point in dragging it on for so long. It would be better to just let it go. Maybe the man would become more comfortable. Maybe then he'd like to share. But until then, Anders could tell he needed to step down. "I understand."

Hawke glanced up for just a moment. Obviously testing Anders over. Not looking fully sure. As if he still didn't know whether the conversation would be over. It was only a few moments before he gave a shrug, looking back towards a far corner. "Thanks babe."

Anders face lit up again at the name. Responding by sitting up more. Slamming his hand down onto Hawke's arm. Which made a loud slapping sound. Why would he keep this up? Was he teasing? He had to be teasing him more. "I thought you weren't going to call me that anymore!" He responded quickly, words fumbling a bit. Bouncing off his tongue and rolling free from his lips.

A roar of laughter escaped Hawke, who leaned their head back. He was obviously enjoying the hell out of this. "I never said I was going to stop. Besides, every time I do it, your reaction is one of the best things I've seen in my whole life!"

Anders huffed before standing to his feet. Not really sure what to say to that. He gave a moment to compose himself. Gathering his thoughts back into one collective. Mumbling something about the books before heading off in another direction.

He could hear Hawke trying to call after him through another burst of laughter. Trying to catch his breath to protest against Anders leaving so quickly. "Aw, Don't leave already!"

Anders glanced back before chuckling. "I have to get you those books. Then I have to get back to work!" Then he turned around the corner. Not even waiting for Hawke's response as he turned the corner. Digging through some old books. Scooping them up and carrying them back to Hawke. Dropping a decent pile next to him. "There you go."

Hawke groaned at the sight of them. Bright orange eyes scanning over them. Only giving each book a second before his gaze would flicker to the next. Finally he let out a loud, obnoxious groan. "Can't you stay here? I hate reading."

Anders smiled slightly before shaking his head. "I wish I could. But I've got a lot of work to do."

Hawke didn't argue more, though he was pouting a bit. It was probably a good thing he didn't go and beg Anders to stay more. Just a bit more persuasion from the handsome lug and Anders would climb up next to him and just write his manifesto here. Honestly the only reason he didn't do that right now was because Justice was already stirring. Complaining how this all was just distracting. They had too much work to be dealing with this. "I'll check on you again in a few hours, okay."

Hawke shrugged. Moving to finger through some of the books. "I don't really have a choice in this."

Anders sighed a bit, feeling a bit upset about being so… disappointing? That felt like a good word to describe Hawke's reactions. But he turned and left. Curling up at his desk in his small room. Setting down to work on his manifesto for the night.

"I don't like him"

Anders was trying to ignore Justice most of the night, but at this he shook his head. "What's not to trust? He hasn't done anything suspicious yet."

"Yet? He's withholding information. You don't think that's strange? People don't hide information unless they're hiding something!"

"What could he possibly be hiding? He sounded like remembering what happened was painful for him. Maybe he's just not ready to talk about it yet."

"We don't know anything about him. What if he's against our cause? What if he's with the te-"

Anders snorted a short laugh at that. "With the Templars? Are you kidding me? No way."

"We don't have any proof he's not." Justice objected, obviously a bit annoyed in how Anders found humor in this, for he was being serious.

There's no proof he is either. Listen, let's give him a bit longer. If I feel like he becomes a threat I'll take care of him, deal?"

Justice sighed in agreement before he started to back off more. "And if you don't hold up to that, I'll do it myself."

Anders nodded, moving back to the Manifesto and going back to writing. Tired eyes slowly beginning to droop close. As hours pass, Anders soon found himself unable to write, and shortly after, he lost the fight to keep his eyes open, he fell upon his desk. Falling into a light sleep for the night.

Hawke wasn't too surprised when Anders didn't come back for the night. Guy seemed like he was exhausted. Like the thin, blond noodle hasn't slept in ages. He felt like that was his life was going to be for awhile. He felt like he wasn't going to be sleeping well any time soon.

His hands went back to the pile of books. He'd never been much into reading but there wasn't much else to do in this place. It wasn't even the fact that he disliked the idea of reading. It was more like he had a hard time keeping his focus on the books. Long paragraphs bored him, and his attention didn't last long through wordy descriptions. Usually Hawke was barely able to make it past the first couple pages.

His hand glided over an older book, wrapping his thick fingers around it before tugging it onto his lap. The corners felt work down. A smooth texture went over it which was most likely from years of hands touching it. Fingers wearing down the original texture of the book. Gliding a finger over the old edges of the paper, one could easily see that someone had folded a lot of the corners of the book. Someone had read this book a lot, certain parts more than others. It definitely was…. Intriguing. Hawke let his wide thumb glide back to the front of the book, gently folding open the to reveal the first page. Crisp edges with an older color to the rest of the page. The title of the book printed in bold text in the center, reading something on the lines of 'A New Start.'

Hawke tilted his head slightly as he went to the next page. Seeing Anders name scratched into one of the corners. Though the paper around it seemed frail, as if it had been a long time since the name was added in.

Might as well give this a try, Hawke thought silently as he continued to flip to the start of the book. He had nothing else to do while he waited for the healer to come back. He knew he wasn't going to bed any time soon. Too many nightmares plagued his dreams now.

So off to reading it was. Turning the page and trying to skim through the words. Finding it surprisingly easy to follow along. Paragraphs short and relaxed, enough detail pressed into them to keep them interesting, but not so much that Hawke would loose his place. Finding himself deep in it before it got too late into the night. Loosing track off time as he cuddled back into bed. Soaking in the words and enjoying a moment of time away from the real world.


End file.
